Weekly roundup: December, 7, 2007

Football

The Bishop’s School is heading to its first CIF-San Diego Section championship game in eight years, thanks to its 63-45 victory over Horizon Christian on Nov. 30.

The Knights rolled over Horizon in the semifinal game, and earned the right to face Christian of El Cajon in the CIF-SDS Division V championship game. The teams will kick off Dec. 7 at 10 a.m. at Qualcomm Stadium. Bishop’s coach Mike David said he and his players were excited about playing in the championship game and the privilege of playing on the same turf as the Chargers and San Diego State, but the team was keeping things businesslike as they prepared for the title tilt.

“We plan on treating this Friday as any other game,” David said. “We know that Christian is a very good team, and that must be our focus. We cannot focus on where we are playing. We’ll try to keep things the same as much as possible.”

Bishop’s got to Qualcomm with a remarkable effort in the semifinals. The Knights led, 8-0, after the first quarter, and then outscored their opponent, 34-7, in the second quarter. That 42-7 halftime lead was enough to help them hold on, even as Horizon out-scored them, 32-14, in the fourth quarter.

Quarterback Tommy Wornham led the Knights’ offense by completing seven of his eight passes for 162 yards and two touchdowns. Saron Hood and Tim Costello each found themselves on the receiving end of Wornham touchdown passes. Running back Nicky Cox led all rushers with eight carries for 75 yards and two scores.

Jacob Kelly also carried the ball seven times for 45 yards and caught one pass for 73 yards. Costello converted six of his seven point-after-touchdown attempts.

Linebacker Will Peck captained the Knights’ defense to the tune of 14 tackles. Costello intercepted two passes and ran them both back for touchdowns. Hood further contributed to the Knights’ key defensive and special teams play, as he ran an interception back for a touchdown and also returned a kickoff for a score.

Micha Seau chipped in with seven tackles, while Mike Eribez, Cox, Zach Frantz and Hector Felix each had six tackles in the big win. “Our defense did a tremendous job,” David said. “I’m very proud of the way we came to play.” Bishop’s entered the championship game with an 11-0 record. The Knights had scored at least 21 points in every game this season, and until their semifinals shootout, had allowed no more than 13 points in a game this year.

Christian was also 11-0 going into the title match, and got there with a 26-21 win over Francis Parker on Nov. 30. The Patriots also were a juggernaut this season, scoring at least 20 points in every game and allowing no more than 22.

La Jolla High School missed a chance to go to the CIF-SDS Division IV championship game, falling to Valley Center in a Nov. 30 semifinal game, 42-0. The Vikings finished their season with a 6-5 overall record.

Girls volleyball

The Bishop’s School fell one game short of its goal of playing in a state championship game. The Knights fell, 23-25, 25-20, 20-25, 25-12, 15-7, to rival Santa Fe Christian, on Nov. 27 in the CIF-State Division IV semifinals.

Santa Fe Christian went on to defeat Harker in a three-game sweep for the state championship. Bishop’s finished its season with a 24-10 record.

Honors

La Jolla Country Day had 14 players earn All-Pacific League honors in football. Five of those players made the first-team offense, and five more were on the first-team defense.

Quarterback Derek Hatfield was the offensive most valuable player. Other members of the first-team offense included wide receiver Tommy Morris, tight end Jon Hanbrough, offensive lineman Andy Altman and kicker Travis Golia.

Torreys players on the first-team defense included linebacker Montell Allen, linebacker Cody Smith, defensive lineman Doug Rogers, defensive lineman Anthony Barkett and defensive back Damian Bagby. Offensive linemen Gabe Fox and Junior Togiaso made the second-team offense, while linebacker Mark Hannum and defensive lineman Indie Lavarias made the second-team defense.

La Jolla Country Day and The Bishop’s School were well represented on the All-Coastal League South cross country teams. Country Day had five runners earn spots on the team, and Bishop’s had eight members. For Country Day, Alex Poyhonen, Dennis Roth, Alex Fleischhacker, Lee Klitzner and Jason McCallum made the boys all-league team.

Bishop’s placed Henry Su, Andy Morgosh and Tyler Davidson on the boys all-league team. The Knights also had Elizabeth Schulze, Laura Wyatt, Lauren Collins, Serena Glynn and Alicia Triana on the girls all-league team.